The West Australian Symphony Orchestra (WASO) is an Australian symphony orchestra based in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, Western Australia. Its principal concert venue is the Perth Concert Hall. WASO also gives concerts at the

Mandurah Mandurah () is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, situated approximately south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's second most populous city, with a population of 107,641 as of the 2021 Australian census, 2 ...

Performing Arts Centre. , WASO has a roster of 79 full-time musicians and presents over 170 performances per annum throughout the state. The orchestra has an affiliated WASO Chorus.

History

In the winter of 1921, weekly concerts by a Perth Symphony

Orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * bowed string instruments, such as the violin, viola, c ...

, conducted by Harold Betteridge and led by Lionel Hart, were advertised in the local newspaper, but the life of this group was brief. In 1928, many professional musicians who had supported the silent movies found themselves out of work, and under the direction of Harold Newton, formed the Perth Symphony Orchestra. The first performance by this group of professional players was given in the Queens Hall of the Regent Theatre. By 1930, the orchestra not only gave concerts in the Queens Hall but also presented ten subscription concerts in the Town Hall. Many of these concerts were broadcast over the radio station

6WF ABC Radio Perth (call sign: 6WF) is the on-air identifier of a radio station located in Perth, Western Australia, operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, and broadcasting at 720 hertz, kHz amplitude modulation, AM. It is the flags ...

. In 1932, the Australian Broadcasting Commission (ABC) was formed (which eventually became the

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

), and part of its charter was to establish broadcast orchestras in each state. In Western Australia, it formed the Western Studio Orchestra of fifteen players, conducted by Nelson Burton. The Perth Symphony Orchestra, conducted by George Reid, was giving regular concerts in His Majesty's Theatre. In 1936, the ABC introduced Celebrity Subscription Concerts, and artists and conductorsmany from overseaswere engaged. The concerts were performed initially in His Majesty's Theatre and then later in the Capitol Theatre and Winthrop Hall at the

University of Western Australia The University of Western Australia (UWA) is a public research university in the Australian state of Western Australia. The university's main campus is in Perth, the state capital, with a secondary campus in Albany, Western Australia, Albany an ...

. The Western Studio Orchestra became the Perth Concert orchestra, and this orchestra was later augmented for the celebrity concerts and became known as the ABC (Perth) Symphony Orchestra. By 1937, the letters "ABC" had been dropped from the title and the orchestra once again became known as the Perth Symphony Orchestra. In 1950, the government of the day, with other municipal bodies, made funds available to subsidise the existing ABC Orchestra. By the end of that year, the West Australian Symphony Orchestra was born, boasting forty permanent members. In 1997, the ABC divested all ABC orchestras from the Concerts department of the ABC into separate subsidiary companies, including a service company known as Symphony Australia. The West Australian Symphony was incorporated in January 1998. Since corporatising, the orchestra has diversified its performances, expanding on its summer outdoor season and taking music to many parts of the community. It has a creative partnership with the

West Australian Opera West Australian Opera (WAO) is the principal opera company of Western Australia and is a resident company at His Majesty's Theatre, Perth. The company formed in 1967 and works in close association with the West Australian Symphony Orchestra. It pr ...

and the

West Australian Ballet West Australian Ballet is the State ballet company of Western Australia and is based in Perth, at the Western Australian Ballet Centre in Maylands. The company was founded in 1952 by Madame Kira Bousloff (formerly of the Ballets Russes) and ...

. WASO principal conductors have included Henry Krips (1948–1971),

Tibor Paul Tibor Paul (29 March 190911 November 1973) was a Hungarian- Australian conductor. He was born in Budapest, Hungary to Antal János Paul, vintner, and his wife Gizella, née Verényi. He studied piano and woodwind under Zoltán Kodály, Hermann ...

(1971–1973),

David Measham David Michael Lucian Measham (1 December 19376 February 2005) was a British-Australian conductor and violinist. Measham was born in Nottingham, England, to a musical family. His father, Lester, had trained as an opera singer and his mother, J ...

(1974–1981), and

Jorge Mester Jorge Mester (born April 10, 1935, Mexico City) is a Mexican conductor of Hungarian ancestry. He has served as the artistic director for the Orquesta Filarmónica de Boca del Río, Veracruz, since it was founded in 2014. Biography He studied condu ...

(1991–1994). Measham took the orchestra on its first overseas tour, to

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, borde ...

, and to the

Sydney Festival Sydney Festival is a major arts festival in Australia's largest city, Sydney that runs for three weeks every January, since it was established in 1977. The festival program features in excess of 100 events from local and international artists an ...

. In 1975, he instigated the inaugural indoor season of three Promenade Concerts, modelled after

The Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

, as part of the

Perth International Arts Festival Perth Festival, named Perth International Arts Festival (PIAF) between 2000 and 2017, and sometimes referred to as the Festival of Perth, is Australia's longest-running cultural festival, held annually in Western Australia. The program features ...

. Measham also held the title of principal guest conductor from 1981 to 1986.

Vladimir Verbitsky Vladimir Igoryevich Verbitsky (russian: Владимир Игоревич Вербицкий; born 1943) is a Soviet and Australian conductor. He was born in Leningrad. He studied piano and conducting at the St. Petersburg Conservatory. He has ...

became principal guest conductor in 1992 and conductor laureate in 1997.

Matthias Bamert Matthias Bamert (born July 5, 1942 in Ersigen, Canton of Bern) is a Swiss composer and conductor. In addition to studies in Switzerland, Bamert studied music in Darmstadt and in Paris, with Pierre Boulez and Karlheinz Stockhausen, and their influ ...

was chief conductor from 2003 to 2006. His initial contract with WASO was through 2007, but dissatisfaction with his tenure caused the orchestra to terminate his contract 18 months early, in May 2006. In May 2007, WASO named

Paul Daniel Paul Daniel (born 5 July 1958) is an English conductor. Biography Early life Daniel was born in Birmingham. As a boy, he sang in the choir of Coventry Cathedral, where he received musical training; then studied music at King's College, Cambr ...

its principal conductor, effective as of January 2009. He had made his guest conducting debut with the WASO in 1995, and returned in April 2006. In November 2010, the WASO announced the extension of Daniel's contract as principal conductor through December 2013, at which time his tenure concluded. In May 2012, WASO announced the appointment of

Asher Fisch Asher Fisch (Hebrew: אשר פיש) (born May 19, 1958, Jerusalem, Israel) is an Israeli conductor and pianist. Fisch began his career as an assistant of Daniel Barenboim and an associate conductor of the Berlin State Opera. He made his United ...

as its newest principal conductor, effective 1 January 2014, with an initial contract of 3 years. In September 2015, the WASO announced the extension of Fisch's contract With the WASO, Fisch has recorded the symphonies of Brahms.

Principal conductors

* Rudolf Pekarek (1951–1954) *

John Farnsworth Hall John Farnsworth Hall (8 December 1899 – 15 June 1987''Sydney Morni ...

(1955–1965) * Thomas Mayer (1965–1970) *

(1971–1973) *

(1975–1981) *

Albert Rosen Albert Rosen (14 February 192423 May 1997) was an Austrian-born and Czech/Irish-naturalised conductor associated with the National Symphony Orchestra of Ireland, the Wexford Festival, the National Theatre in Prague and J. K. Tyl Theatre in P ...

(1982–1985) *

(1991–1993) *

Vernon Handley Vernon George "Tod" Handley (11 November 1930 – 10 September 2008) was a British conductor, known in particular for his support of British composers. He was born of a Welsh father and an Irish mother into a musical family in Enfield, Middles ...

(1994–1997) *

(2003–2006) *

(2009–2013) *

(2014–

Awards and nominations

APRA-AMC Art Music Awards

The APRA-AMC Art Music Awards (previously Classical Music Awards) are presented annually by

Australasian Performing Right Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwr ...

(APRA), Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS) and

Australian Music Centre The Australian Music Centre (AMC), formerly known briefly as Sounds Australian, is a national organisation promoting and supporting art music in Australia, founded in 1974. It co-hosts the Art Music Awards along with APRA AMCOS, and publishes '' ...

(AMC) since 2002. They "honour the achievements of composers, performers and industry specialists in the contemporary classical genre." {, class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" , - ! scope="col" , Year ! scope="col" , Recipient / Nominated work ! scope="col" , Award ! scope="col" , Result ! scope="col" class="unsortable" , , - !scope="row" ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

, ''This Insubstantial Pageant'' (Gordon Kerry) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra , Orchestral Work of the Year , , , - !scope="row" ,

, West Australian Symphony Orchestra , Most Distinguished Contribution to the Presentation of Australian Composition by an Organisation , , , - !scope="row",

2005 File:2005 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf of Mexico; the Funeral of Pope John Paul II is held in Vatican City; "Me at the zoo", the first video ever to be uploaded to YouTube; Eris was discovered in ...

, ''The Dischord Hunter'' – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Education Chamber Orchestra (WASO EChO) , Outstanding Contribution to Australian Music in Education , , , - !scope="row",

2006 File:2006 Events Collage V1.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2006 Winter Olympics open in Turin; Twitter is founded and launched by Jack Dorsey; The Nintendo Wii is released; Montenegro 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum, votes to declare ...

, ''Line Drawing'' ( James Ledger) – Genevieve Lacey, West Australian Symphony , Best Performance of an Australian Composition , , , - !scope="row" ,

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

, ''Trumpet Concerto'' ( James Ledger) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, David Elton (trumpet), Sachio Fujioka (conductor) , Orchestral Work of the Year , , , - !scope="row" ,

, ''Concerto'' Project – West Australian Symphony Orchestra , Outstanding Contribution by an Organisation , , , - !scope="row",

2009 File:2009 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The vertical stabilizer of Air France Flight 447 is pulled out from the Atlantic Ocean; Barack Obama becomes the first African American to become President of the United States; 2009 Iran ...

, ''Symphony No. 7 Scenes from Daily Life'' (

Carl Vine Carl Edward Vine, (born 8 October 1954) is an Australian composer of contemporary classical music. From 1975 he has worked as a freelance pianist and composer with a variety of theatre and dance companies, and ensembles. Vine's catalogue inclu ...

) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra , Best Performance of an Australian Composition , , , - !scope="row",

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

, ''A Dream of Drowning'' ( Andrew Ford /

Tim Winton Timothy John Winton (born 4 August 1960) is an Australian writer. He has written novels, children's books, non-fiction books, and short stories. In 1997, he was named a Living Treasure by the National Trust of Australia, and has won the Miles ...

) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra,

Teddy Tahu Rhodes Teddy Tahu Rhodes (born 30 August 1966) is a New Zealand operatic baritone. Early life Rhodes was born in Christchurch, New Zealand, on 30 August 1966, to a British mother, Joyce, and a New Zealand father, Terrence Tahu Gravenor Rhodes. The Mao ...

(soloist),

(conductor) , Work of the Year – Orchestral , , , - !scope="row",

, ''Chronicles'' ( James Ledger) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Paul Daniel (conductor) , Work of the Year – Orchestral , , , - !scope="row",

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

, ''Spirit Ground'' (

Ross Edwards Ross Edwards (born 1 December 1942) is a former Australian cricketer. Edwards played in 20 Test matches for Australia, playing against England, West Indies and Pakistan. He also played in nine One Day Internationals including the 1975 Crick ...

) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Margaret Blades (soloist) , Work of the Year – Orchestral , , , - !scope="row",

, ''Two Memorials for Anton Webern and John Lennon'' ( James Ledger) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Paul Daniel (conductor) , Performance of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

, ''Golden Years'' ( James Ledger) – Margaret Blades (soloist), West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Otto Tausk (conductor) , Work of the Year – Orchestral , , , - !scope="row",

, West Australian Symphony Orchestra – 2013 education program , Award for Excellence in Music Education , , , - !scope="row",

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

, rowspan="2" , "Concerto for clarinet and orchestra" ( Lachlan Skipworth) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Ashley Smith (soloist),

Baldur Brönnimann Baldur Brönnimann (born 1968, Basel) is a Swiss conductor. Biography Born in Basel, Brönnimann studied at the Musik-Akademie der Stadt Basel and was a junior fellow in conducting at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. From 2008 ...

(conductor) , Orchestral Work of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

, Performance of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

, "Concerto for Orchestra" (

) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Michael Stern (conductor) , Performance of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

, West Australian Symphony Orchestra – 2016 education program , Award for Excellence in Music Education , , , - !scope="row",

2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...

, "Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra" (Paul Stanhope) – Joshua Davis (trombone), West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Asher Fisch (conductor) , Orchestral Work of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

, ''Spiritus'' ( Lachlan Skipworth) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra, Daniel Blendulf (conductor) , Orchestral Work of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

, ''Maali, op. 101'' – "Concerto for oboe, clarinet, bassoon and horn with orchestra" (

Andrew Schultz Andrew Schultz (born 18 August 1960 in Adelaide, South Australia) is an acclaimed Australian classical composer. A musician with a large and widely performed output and an international sphere of activity he has, since 2008, lived in Sydney, New ...

) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra and soloists; Simone Young (conductor) , Performance of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

, Crescendo – West Australian Symphony Orchestra , Excellence in Music Education , , , - !scope="row",

, ''Implacable Gifts (Concerto for Two Pianos and Orchestra)'' (

) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra , Orchestral Work of the Year , , , - !scope="row",

2022 File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; 2022 Sri Lankan protests, Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretari ...

, ''Hymns for End Times'' (Rachael Dease) – West Australian Symphony Orchestra , Performance of the Year: Notated Composition , , , -

ARIA Music Awards

The

ARIA Music Awards The Australian Recording Industry Association Music Awards (commonly known informally as ARIA Music Awards, ARIA Awards, or simply the ARIAs) is an annual series of awards nights celebrating the Australian music industry, put on by the Austr ...

is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres of

Australian music The music of Australia has an extensive history made of music societies. Indigenous Australian music forms a significant part of the unique heritage of a 40,000- to 60,000-year history which produced the iconic didgeridoo. Contemporary fusions of ...

. They commenced in 1987. ! , - ,

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

, ''The Transposed Heads]'' , ARIA Award for Best Classical Album, Best Classical Album , , ARIA Award previous winners. , -

References

External links

*
Weat Australian Ballet web site
{{Authority control APRA Award winners Australian orchestras Culture in Perth, Western Australia Symphony orchestras Musical groups established in 1928 1928 establishments in Australia